I love History. In fact, I even majored in History at Texas A&M. That said, without visual cues I’m horrific at remembering the actual dates for many of the greater events in history.

I remember struggling to remember dates for pop quizzes and tests in Junior High and High School until the day I stumbled across a timeline in the back of one of my textbooks. That was a lightbulb moment for me – everything “fit” into place; I discovered I could retain the information with a simple visual reminder.

I took this knowledge into my college years, sealing date after date into my head with my own version of a timeline – 3×5 size index cards running the length of my dorm-room wall, right above my bed. I could stare at them as I went to sleep, when I woke up, when I studied, when I talked on the phone, and when I ate.

When we first began homeschooling our oldest, Emelie, we lived in a rental home with a very long hallway. Placing 8 1/2 x 11 sheets of printer paper side by side down the length of the hallway, I created a timeline for Emelie right at her eye level.

Together we charted different historical events and people we came across in her readers using her simple, hand-drawn pictures taped or glued to the time line. Throughout the week she would walk by this timeline innumerable times, recounting what she learned in our readers to whoever would listen, and sometimes just to herself.

When I began using Your words and a Sonlight, one of the tools they strongly recommended for History was their Book of Time; it’s basically a bound version of what I created on the hallway years ago. The Book of Time has a blank time line with dates that run from 5000 BC to present time.

Each year we purchase the Time Line Stickers that correspond with the girls’ History and History Readers; next year we’ll begin the same with Kenny.

Meredith and Emelie share a Book of Time. Meredith populates the bottom and Emelie, the top. This means it sometimes gets a little hectic.

Here’s a fun fact: Benjamin Franklin could remember a time when there were thirteen siblings gathered around his dinner table. THIRTEEN! The difference in years between the oldest and youngest child in his family was an entire generation!

Can you imagine how jammed-up his family’s Book of Time would have appeared?

Both girls will typically take a good deal of time Monday-Wednesday coloring their time line stickers; I’ve noticed they poop out on Thursday (our “Friday”).

Poor Thomas Jefferson, for a man who wrote the Declaration of Independence, he certainly earned the time it takes to color him in, don’t ya think?

Maybe I’ll go back and fix that – out of respect and all.

The horse pictured on the left represented one of Meredith’s readers by Marguerite Henry, Justin Morgan Had a Horse. Both girls particularly like it when their History Readers are represented in the time-line.

“OH! Look, it’s on the time-line – it must REALLY be a TRUE STORY!”

Nothing seals truth like a time-line it seems.

As you can see, we’re not too fond of Napoleon…he and his scowl remains stuck cattywampus forever.

Poor, poor Napoleon.

NOT.

Meredith and I read Jean Lee Latham’s Carry On, Mr. Bowditch and loved it. In History, Nathaniel Bowditch was a mathematical genius, publishing the first edition of his book, Bowditch’s American Practical Navigator, in 1802. Basically, his contributions to maritime navigation mean ANYONE could learn to safely navigate their ships “by the book”.

Of course, Meredith was more interested in his childhood, his loves and his losses. Heaven help us, she is all about the “romance” of life.

This year the Constitution of the United States was signed.

Okay, not THIS YEAR, but we studied it THIS YEAR.

We learned of how Sacajawea, the Shoshone woman, helped Lewis and Clark on their famous expedition.

My kids have been to the Alamo – though Meredith was about 16 months old so she doesn’t remember. I went when I was around 7. My parents will tell you I was more interested in the hotel pool, but I have PICTURES to PROVE I was there.

What can I tell ya? I was more into chlorine than History at age 7.

We learned about 6th street in Austin, Texas.

No, not really. Heh heh.

We did sing our state song and whoop and holler as we marched around the house! Nothing like pride of state to get the blood pumping in the morning!

“TEXAS OUR TEXAS ALL HAIL THE MIGHTY STATE!”

Ever seen the bumper sticker, “American by birth, Texan by the grace of God”?
Yep, we really feel that way in these here parts.

Again I take you BACK to the Time Line.

With four more weeks of school this year we still have several stickers left to color and stick into our Book of Time. Then it packs up for the summer and will come back out again in the new school year.

I look forward to seeing it full one day. The girls can flip back through it and visually SEE all they have read and learned. It also makes a great, ongoing portfolio piece for our homeschool.

Kenny has requested his OWN Book of Time since he’s starting 2nd Grade next year and has several years of people and events to record.

I think we can oblige.

After all, I’m excited to do it all over again!

About the Author: Heather Sanders is a work at home mom who homeschools her three children. If you’d like to learn if it’s possible for you to pursue your passions and earn an income while staying home with your kids, subscribe today.

I love this concept so much – my 9th grade history teacher had a long timeline on her wall, and I remember understanding everything so much better once it was written out so clearly. And while I’m actually pretty good about remembering specific dates, I’m dreadful at putting dates/events from different countries and parts of the world together, so seeing it all in one place is just a brilliant idea. And along the wall of your home? Best educational tool ever. Well, that and cheese.

History can be so much fun! I love exploring our collective past. The kids love learning about (as my oldest calls it) “olden days” and having a love of learning is something that is so awesome to see!

I love the idea of a time line! It’s got the gears in my head spinning. We just went to Mesa Verde and saw the amazing cliff dwellings, but it made me wonder what was going on in Europe during that very same time. A time line would be a great way to demonstrate that, don’t you think? Thanks for the great idea.

Thank you so much for posting that video from Night at the Museum!! That was the first time I’ve seen it and I watched it about 15 times and laughed until my stomach and cheeks hurt! Wow, that’s funny!!

10

Illinialum On Monday, May 3 at 8:40 am

My American History teacher had us play date bingo every Friday. We had to fill out a blank bingo card with important dates in American History (from a pre-selected list). Then he would draw “events” and read them. We had to mark off the corresponding dates on our bingo cards. The winner was given change to go down to the pop machine and get a pop to drink in class. It was a very popular activity with everyone in the class! And we learned those dates quickly!

11

Jo in RI On Monday, May 3 at 8:40 am

I had always wanted to create my own time line–love to think about what was happening on different continents at different time, or what was happening in religious history during various explorations around the world, etc. So I was thrilled when we got our book of time from Sonlight. I hope we can keep on filling it year after year even with stuff that’s not on stickers.

I wish I had thought of this when I was teaching. I just had a large piece of butcher paper that stretched across the Social Studies wall and the kids added their ‘artwork’ for each time period we studied. This little book is much cooler! Thanks for sharing!

Chelle in MO On Monday, May 3 at 8:48 am

Very nice book!! I know what the monkeys will be working over summer break. Can I tell you how much they love me for filling their summer days with brainy activities

17

rayleighsmom On Monday, May 3 at 9:23 am

My mom has been using Sonlight with my brother, he loves it. I plan to use it with my daughter when she starts school in a few years. (My brother and my daughter are only a few years apart… it’s creepy actually.)

Oh, and you mentioned Texas pride. We just bought a house in Texas and my husband is going crazy. Every time he walks in the door he yells “You’re looking at a real, live Texan!” He drives me nuts! (I guess he’s just glad to be moving back after all these years.)

18

Shelley On Monday, May 3 at 9:23 am

We are Sonlighters who use that book. Love it, although ours looks much more dull (we don’t color the pictures). My oldest is 7, so I pretty much don’t let the kids touch it at this point. I guess I’ll eventually have to get one for all six kids when they become ‘mature’ enough to keep it up themselves.

rebekahd On Monday, May 3 at 9:39 am

oh, and we have a big ole time line from Add-a-Century that you can add things in different catagories (artists, politicians, Biblical, etc., whatever catagories you want to make up) — but haven’t started using it yet my kiddos are 5 and 6. We’re starting it in the fall! You can also get a ton of spectacle images courtesy of http://www.antiquespectacles.com

28

Liz On Monday, May 3 at 9:47 am

I remember reading “Carry On, Mr. Bowditch!” I loved that book (and had completely forgotten about it until now).

Ok, I do NOT have this and I have decided that I MUST have this. This is just way too cool.

And massive Texas high fives, by the way.

30

CArolyn On Monday, May 3 at 9:59 am

My Dad once told me that our family were survivors of the Alamo. When I reminded him there were no survivors of the Alamo, he commented that he didn’t say which side we were on! So silly.

31

Amy On Monday, May 3 at 10:00 am

TEXAS A&M?? I’m a junior here now! Currently looking out at the university golf course. Whoop! Of course you’re an Aggie. It all makes perfect sense.

32

Mrs. W On Monday, May 3 at 10:01 am

This is a great idea! I can remember my 10th grade world history teacher making a time line of all the things that were going on in the whole world at the same time during each century. That really hit home for me – history is going on everywhere at the same time. Not just one continent at a time. : )

And …. I think everyone should learn the history of 6th Street at some point in their lives. : ) College wouldn’t have been quite as fun without it in my life!

33

Kathi On Monday, May 3 at 10:08 am

Another Aggie here – whoop! Class of 1996….gig ‘em! And I love the timeline book – great idea!

Love it. History has never looked more precious! Heads Up though – the first American Thanksgiving was not celebrated in 1620 in Plymouth but in 1565, in St. Augustine, Florida. The Spanish hosted the event and invited the Timucua tribe to join them.

I’m so glad SUGAR made the time line, since it is a solid part of the USDA food pyramid! Can corn chips be far behind??

39

AggieKimmi On Monday, May 3 at 10:33 am

Whoop! Class of ’03 here.

40

Cami On Monday, May 3 at 10:44 am

Class of 2009!! Whoop! So after you sing Texas Our Texas … is that immediately followed by the War Hymn and Spirit of Aggieland? I sure hope so… for all that is good, great, Texan, and Aggie. I love the guest-posters PW has on here! She did an especially great job picking an Aggie! =)

Lori On Monday, May 3 at 11:21 am

We were unschoolers, therefore no Sonlight – but lots of homeschoolers use the timeline around the diningroom walls idea, or the shower curtain that can be drawn on with pockets added on. We have a huge fat book called Timetables of History that was wonderful. Now I really miss homeschooling….

Abby On Monday, May 3 at 11:29 am

You went to A&M? I didn’t even know! I thought yall were up in the midwest somewhere. This timeline seems like such a great idea. It’s so good to have a visualization of the order things go in. I’m not that good at history, but something like this might have helped.

46

Konni Jo On Monday, May 3 at 11:43 am

I love TX and OK! I was born in OK and grew up in TX so I’m partial to both states (lots of family in OK). You got the best of both worlds!

Clara On Monday, May 3 at 12:42 pm

yep. need it.
My little man starts 2nd grade next year too.
He takes classes at this school for home schoolers..
I ususally sign him up for the history and science ~ animal science! =) He loves it…. so do I… love history! I will have to find the name of the books his teacher uses… we have taken “famous inventions, Its a bird its a plane, famous historical people, and famous historical landmarks” to name a few. The books she uses are AMAZING! I will photograph them tomorrow if I get a chance and post about them! You would like em!!

Love the timeline. We Texans are prould of our heritage. My mom always made Texas-shaped cookies for Texas Independence Day. When our son came to live with us, our first family vacation included a visit to the Alamo. Followed, of course by a trip to Mi Tierra.

53

buttercup On Monday, May 3 at 1:18 pm

It was designed by a group of curators, teachers, writers, designers, and developers for children in so that they could appreciate and learn all about what was in the Science Museum in London (UK) even if they couldn’t visit it in person. …It also important to do this since the Science Museum have so much stuff that they can’t show the entire collection but only 2% of it at a time in the museum.

54

Julie Roberts On Monday, May 3 at 1:27 pm

The time line book was one of the biggest reasons I chose Sonlight curriculum. I love how it lines up biblical people/places with world history visually. We are doing US history this year, but I can’t wait to start world history next year!

55

Debmom4ca On Monday, May 3 at 1:27 pm

I have wanted to make a time line for a few years now. Perfectionism has stopes me. I apprecate that your stickers are not all perfectly straight and the lines are a little crooked.

Gig ‘em, PW. Why haven’t we talked about this before? Loving me some Texas history, too. As an elementary librarian, I love checking your book recs and activities here. Keep them coming! Maybe “homeschooling” limits some readers. What about just good ol’ “schooling”?

59

Julie from TEXAS On Monday, May 3 at 1:53 pm

Hey, fellow Texan, Heather Sanders!! I homeschool my young ‘uns and used Sonlight with my son one year….gotta dig it out of storage for my daughter now. We didn’t have the Book of Time but I am going to order it from the sonlight website. Thanks for the tip! I am trying to plan some historical field trips for the kids this summer. Last year we tooks some day trips to check out old ghost towns and cemetaries…really interesting. Well, the kids were sweltering in the heat and I was begging them to get out of the car, mostly but i enjoyed it….well, you know how these Texas summers are….they could burn the nuts off Sam Houston’s statue… *wink*

60

Leigh T On Monday, May 3 at 1:57 pm

As one educated in Texas schools : “God bless you Texas and keep you brave and strong, that you may grow in power and worth throughout the ages long!”

Sorry, that was probably a run-on. Bless Texas’s heart, the schools can be overcrowded in places like Houston.

61

Mrs. K Hewett On Monday, May 3 at 2:06 pm

Thanks so much for sharing this, Ree. My daughter and I have just started our own timeline, so it was great to see what your daughters have done.

Honestly, I don’t think many people are very fond of Napoleon. However it appears that some of my maternal ancestors WERE fans of his – in my family genealogy research [my fave hobby] I’ve come across not one, but multiple sons named “Napoleon Bonaparte ________”. First and middle names – go figure!

62

TexasGal On Monday, May 3 at 2:17 pm

Whoop! Class of ’95. This is a great resource for any type of schooler. Thanks!

Wow! I love that idea! And I’m 60+ years old! You don’t have to be a kid to love history.

64

Rebecca On Monday, May 3 at 2:39 pm

That would be awesome to be as smart as Nathaniel Bowditch! I would not want to be him, however, because _all_ of his friends and relations die. Poor genius.

65

jep On Monday, May 3 at 2:42 pm

What a good suggestion! I am going to look into this in the future if grandchildren come along! Way to go Aggie! Gig’em! We love the Maroon and White at our house especially “The Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band!” Smile!

I’m not a homeschool mom – not a mom at all – but your idea about the timeline is excellent and Indeed – Texan by the grace of God and intelligence of my mama!

67

Mary On Monday, May 3 at 3:22 pm

I had no clue you went to A&M. Whoop!

68

Sonja On Monday, May 3 at 3:34 pm

Not a timeline, but a visual learning aid: When I started taking English in school (I’m German), I put up a list of English irregular verbs in the bathroom next to the toilet (I laminated it first ;), and I would take a look at it several times a day for years. After a while I could remember them all without ever really having made an effort to learn them. But the fun part is that my little sister grew up with that list since the age of four, so when she started learning English, she was puzzled that she already knew all those verbs, because she never thought of the list as “learning” – it was just always there and had found its way into her brain. Give it a try, it really works! (And 20 years later, that list is still up and we will see if it will also work for my niece and nephew when they visit their grandparents

69

Mandi On Monday, May 3 at 3:35 pm

We’re starting our first year of homeschool (1st grade) this coming year. A timeline is a great idea! And I was the only one in our family to bust a gut laughing at the Sacajawea scene in Smithsonian. There were crickets chirping in our living room while I howled. And as vexing as it is, our whole family is more interested in chlorine than exotic sights and sounds. As in “how about going to Disney this summer?” “Does it have a pool?” Sheesh.

We just moved to College Station from Austin! Any loves in town or pointers??

71

gkey On Monday, May 3 at 3:54 pm

dear Teaching In Texas,
I have never seen one of these, but am interested. Did you say you got it from Sonlight? I will have to check into that. We have 2 girls done, (25 & 22) and on their own. At home we have 2 teenage boys (17 & 14) then a girl (12) and a boy (8) We all like history well enough, but I don’t feel like any of us have a real solid ‘time-line’ of it.
Thanks for featuring this.
love,
History. period.
in
NE

We use this, but this year I forgot to order the stickers. Kept putting it off and now 2nd grade is over! I think I’ll purchase them with my new books over the summer and have a mini-review as we put them in the book. Thanks for your perspective.

Oh Mrs. Heather, Thank you so much for this post!
I ordered my Core 1 from Sonlight and YOU were the one who sold me on it so thank you! I wondered how a the timeline would look once we get started, I love it! There is a picture on flickr that I will send you of a timeline around the border of their Homeschool room. Very cool. As always thank you for your detailed posts, they are very much appreciated!!

Heather G

75

jennifer On Monday, May 3 at 5:34 pm

My daughter goes to a Classical Education School….3 days on, 2 @ home. This is what they use from 4th grade on and keep it from year to year. We love it.

stickers? How did you get stickers? Sonlight just gave me a bunch of pages stapled together, with the first picture I needed RIGHT UNDER THE STAPLE! You’d think they could have printed them in reverse order so you could cut out the one you needed without taking apart the entire thing. I actually find that a long, across the hallway/around the room timeline works better, the bound version was hard for them to really ‘picture’. Ours is sadly, mostly empty.

77

Jill On Monday, May 3 at 5:48 pm

Whoop! Howdy from the proudest member of the class of ’04! Love the timeline book – can’t wait til my 1 and 2 year old can use it!

That book looks like so much fun. I wish I had something like that when I was in school. I will definitely have to remember this later on down the road once i’m done with my degree and hopefully start teaching.

79

Michelle On Monday, May 3 at 6:36 pm

We also love Carry On Mr. Bowditch. The local county library has a copy of his Navigation that we checked out and looked at. I got chills. My oldest was visiting a friend who is in the Coast Guard and saw a copy on his shelf. He was amazed that we knew about it. That book is still in use!

(class of 1985!)

80

sanctuary On Monday, May 3 at 6:42 pm

Whoop!!
Gig ‘em, Aggies! ’99

81

Courtney On Monday, May 3 at 7:19 pm

Just had to say hi to another Aggie History Major–class of ’96. Gig ‘em!

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denise duncan On Monday, May 3 at 7:39 pm

I LOVE time lines. To me, it was the only way to learn history. (very visual-memory, here…). Glad to hear that there are materials available, and to encourage you that your children are getting a better education from you than they’d ever get in public school….which is a sad commentary on the school system….sigh.

You are going to Disney soon. They have some great educational opportunities for your punks at EPCOT! Check out the presentation at the American Pavilion – fantastic presentation of our American History! (really great animatronics make the history come to life). Also, in the Magic Kingdom, the Hall of Presidents is another wonderful presentation that includes all of our country’s presidents, including our current one!

84

carol On Monday, May 3 at 8:36 pm

Do you have “The Wall Chart of World History”?

85

Rachel C On Monday, May 3 at 9:00 pm

Great stuff. I”m a visual learner too. I never had a timeline and maybe this is why I’m terrible at history, but I can’t wait to actually learn stuff when my kids go to school!

Lisa Lanning On Monday, May 3 at 9:51 pm

Ok…that makes it a go…I’ve been thinking of sonlight and hemming and hawing over it…I LOVE reading. Plus, we will be moving to Aggie country in about 4 weeks. So, gotta keep up with PW (you’re the new replacement for the Joneses)

89

Lisa Lanning On Monday, May 3 at 9:53 pm

Ok.. I mean PW and Crew…Heather you really did help me to get more comfortable with my switch to sonlight.

Haha my parents and both of their families (and a lot of extended family!) are all from Texas.. and most went to University of Texas! Although, some *did* jump ship and attend A&M.. haha! My dad has the bumper sticker “Longhorns and Cowboys.. Only in Texas!” Makes me smile every time I come home, because he has it fixed crookedly to the back of his ’75 pickup from when he lived out there.

Helen – #76 – The Timeline figures are sold in 8 1/2 x 11 sheets and they ARE stickers. You cut them out and remove them from their backing (they are on sticker paper so they can be colored.)

Carol – #84 – Yes, I do, but it doesn’t have the same effect. It is well done and informative, but the actual ACT of coloring in, locating, and placing images seems to be what causes that lightbulb moment to go off with me and my kiddos.

Marie M.C. On Tuesday, May 4 at 4:35 am

Sonja Nelson On Tuesday, May 4 at 9:28 am

That looks like a great book!! Oh and how I laugh when I watch that seen. My kids look at me with worry in their eyes as mummy is about to pee her pants laughing. Awesome movie!

96

laura On Tuesday, May 4 at 9:35 am

We are a family that adds to what is being taught in public school with materials at home with one of them being Timetables of History (bought for a quarter at a garage sale). Money well spent and cheap if bought on Amazon.
Have had teachers through the years ask to borrow this book to help them through parts of the history class and know of at least two teachers who added this to their classroom library after viewing ours.

97

wendy On Tuesday, May 4 at 9:35 am

I laughed so hard at that part in the movie also! We have the homeschooling in the woods timeline although I enjoy filling it in more than my dd does.

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ReadMoreMom On Tuesday, May 4 at 9:51 am

We made our own “book of time” by starting with a time line that went around the living room wall and down the hall up near the top of the wall. We worked on it several years. It gave a real sense of time as it went and went. You could (almost) literally walk through history. Then the time came when we needed to paint the walls. We transferred it all into a 14 x 17 inch 100 page sketch book with one page per hundred years (or three pages per 100 years starting in 1400 when historical events start crowding in on themselves). We used some bought pictures. The kids also enjoyed drawing some of the own. Now as we add to it with the youngest child, he either draws or prints a representative picture from the Internet. It’s been worked on continuously since 1993 and is a home school family archive. I don’t know how to decide which child will inherit it!

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Becky On Tuesday, May 4 at 9:56 am

I love this timeline! Believe it or not, I used a roll of fax paper that I had around here for our timeline. Do you know how much easier life could have been with this book?

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Julie On Tuesday, May 4 at 10:15 am

Wish I had the timeline when I was doing homeschooling.
Love your posts and your ode to Texas. I’m from MI and we dream about moving to Texas, what we see as the last bastion of freedom, especially after yesterday when our Gov. approved cell phones and 200 mins. for all the people on assistance in MI. Hmm. Where do those dollars come from? Texas looks better and better every day.

Find the Pioneer Woman on:

Charlie has a brand new children's book out, and it's all about the day a new calf comes into the world! She sleeps in Charlie's bed, hogs all the attention...and hilarity ensues. Hope you and your kiddos enjoy the book!